Applications of modal logics are abundant in computer science, and a large number of structurally different modal logics have been successfully employed in a diverse spectrum of application contexts. Coalgebraic semantics, on the other hand, provides a uniform and encompassing view on the large variety of specific logics used in particular domains. The coalgebraic
approach is generic and compositional: tools and
techniques simultaneously apply to a large class of application
areas and can moreover be combined in a modular way.
In particular, this facilitates a pick-and-choose approach to domain
specific formalisms, applicable across the entire scope of
application areas, leading to generic software tools that are easier to design, to implement, and to maintain.
This paper substantiates the authors' firm belief that the systematic exploitation of this coalgebraic nature will not only have impact on
the field of modal logic itself but also
lead to significant progress in a number
of areas within computer science, such as knowledge representation
and concurrency/mobility.